Management Information

System
 The management information system
(MIS) is a concept of the last decade or
two.
 It has been understood and described in
a number of ways.
 It is also popularly known as the
information system.
 The information and decision system, the
computer based information system.
Meaning
Management Information System is
defined as
 “An integrated user machine system,
 for providing information,
 to support the operations,
 management analysis and
 decision-making functions.
 The system utilizes computer hardware and
software, manual procedures, models for
analysis, planning, control, decision making
and database”.
-Gordon B. Davis
 The MIS is a strategy which
provides the information for
making decisions regarding the
integration of the organization
through the process of
management.
-Robert G. Murdrick
 Management: It is the process
by which managers create,
direct, maintain and operate
purposive organization through
systematic, coordinated co-
operative human effort.
 Information: Information consists
of data that have been retrieved,
processed or other wise used for
informative or inference purposes,
argument or as a basis for
forecasting or decision making.
 System: System can be described
simply as a set of elements joined
together for a common objective.
Example: organization is a system,
and the parts are divisions,
departments, units etc. are
subsystem.
MIS COMPONENTS

 Data gathering
 Data entry
 Data transformation
 Information utilization
FUNCTIONS OF AN MIS

 Collect data
 Store and process data
 Present information to managers
CHARACTERISTICS OF MIS

 MIS is management oriented

 Management directed
 Integrated system
 Avoids redundancy in data storage
 Avoids redundancy in data storage
 Common data flow
 Heavy planning element

 Subsystem concept

 Common database

 Flexibility

 Computerization
Role of MIS
 The role of MIS in an organization is compared
to the role of heart in the body. The
information is the blood and the MIS is the
heart.
 MIS satisfies the diverse needs through a
variety of systems such as query system,
analysis system, modeling systems and DSS.
 MIS helps the clerical persons in the
transaction processing and answers their
queries on the data pertaining to the
transaction, status and reference on a variety
of document.
 The MIS helps the junior management
personnel by providing the operational
data for planning, scheduling and control,
and help them further in decision making
at the operations level to correct an out
of control situation.
 The MIS helps the middle management
in short term planning, target setting an
controlling the business functions.
 The MIS helps the top management in
goal setting, strategic planning and
evolving the business plans and their
implementation.
 MIS plays the role of information
generation, communication, problem
identification and helps in the
process of decision making. The
MIS, therefore, plays a vital role in
the management, administration and
operations of an organization.
Impact of MIS

 MIS creates an impact on the

organization’s functions,
performance and productivity. With
good MIS support, the management
of marketing, finance, production
becomes more efficient.
 MIS helps the manager to be alert by
providing certain information indicating
the probable trends in the various
aspects of business. The manager’s
attention is brought to a situation which is
exceptional in nature, inducing him to
take an action or a decision in that
matter.
 MIS creates another impact in the organization
which relates to the understanding of the business
itself. The MIS begins with the definition of a data
entity and its attributes.
 MIS calls for a systemization of the business
operations for an effective system design.
 Since the goals and objectives of the MIS are the
products of business goals and objectives, it helps
indirectly to pull the entire organization in one
direction towards the corporate goals and objectives
by providing the relevant information to the people in
the organization.
 Each age has its own tool. The
New Economy’s central tool is
Information Technology… just as
automation was the central tool for
the Industrial Revolution
 The need to master the use of Information
Technology – in the broader sense of
Information and Communication
Technologies – is not negotiable, it’s the
world’s direction
 Information Technology is multidisciplinary
and you need to identify the portion you wish
to “swim in”
 Information Sciences, Telecommunications,
Networks, Computing and Emerging
Technologies have converged to provide this
generation with a tool with which we can
acquire appropriate skills, e.g leadership
 The Internet remains the world’s largest
library, encyclopedia and resource centre
rolled into one. Explore it, study the content,
meet with the living and the dead who lived
your dream, and shorten the distance
between you and knowledge
 Don’t just get, give. Contribute your own
quota to the world’s pool of leadership skills
by uploading content to the web.
Introduction to e-
Commerce 
 It is most commonly associated with buying and
selling information, products, and services via the
Internet, but it is also used to transfer and share
information within organizations through intranets
to improve decision-making and eliminate
duplication of effort. The new paradigm of
eCommerce is built not just on transactions but on
building, sustaining and improving relationships,
both existing and potential.
 Web surfing brings each eCommerce (Electronic
Commerce) site and its product or service into the
home, office, room or palm of the client and orders
can be placed with the click of a mouse or the push
of a key. Personal identification, customer
preferences and a sophisticated database of
customers can be monitored to provide tailored or
customised services to clients. Electronic Fund
Transfer (EFT) makes it possible for transaction to
be completed with payments carried our real-time
and online.
 THE CHARACTERISTICS OF
INFORMATION

 Quality
 Timeliness
 Completeness
 Relevance
Data, Information and Systems
 Data & Information Systems
 What Is a System?
 System: A set of components that work together to
achieve a common goal

 Subsystem: One part of a system where the products of

more than one system are combined to reach an
ultimate goal

 Closed system: Stand-alone system that has no contact

with other systems

 Open system: System that interfaces with other systems

SYSTEMS

 System is defined as a set of elements

arranged in an orderly manner to
accomplish an objective. The term
system is generally used for a group of
actions, personnel and procedures,
used for processing data. In general, it
is a set of related activities which may
or may not involve computers.
Data & Information Systems

Figure 1.3 Several subsystems make up this corporate accounting

system.
Data, Information,
and Systems
 Information and Managers

 Systems thinking
 Creates a framework for problem solving and
decision making.
 Keeps managers focused on overall goals and
operations of business.
Data, Information, and Systems
Data, Information,
and Systems
 The Benefits of Human-Computer Synergy

 Synergy
 When combined resources produce output that exceeds
the sum of the outputs of the same resources employed
separately

 Allows human thought to be translated into

efficient processing of large amounts of data
 Data, Information, and Systems

Figure 1.6 Components of an information system

Data, Information,
and Systems
 The Four Stages of Data Processing

 Input: Data is collected and entered into computer.

 Data processing: Data is manipulated into information

using mathematical, statistical, and other tools.

 Output: Information is displayed or presented.

 Storage: Data and information are maintained for later use.

Why Study IS?

 Information Systems Careers

 Systems analyst, specialist in enterprise resource planning
(ERP), database administrator, telecommunications specialist,
consulting, etc.
 Knowledge Workers
 Managers and non-managers
 Employers seek computer-literate professionals who know how
to use information technology.
 Computer Literacy Replacing Traditional
Literacy
 Key to full participation in western society
Ethical and Societal Issues
The Not-So-Bright Side
 Consumer Privacy
 Organizations collect (and sometimes sell)
huge amounts of data on individuals.

 Employee Privacy
 IT supports remote monitoring of
employees, violating privacy and creating
stress.
Ethical and Societal Issues
The Not-So-Bright Side
 Freedom of Speech
 IT increases opportunities for pornography, hate speech,
intellectual property crime, an d other intrusions; prevention
may abridge free speech.

 IT Professionalism
 No mandatory or enforced code of ethics for IT
professionals--unlike other professions.

 Social Inequality
 Less than 20% of the world’s population have ever used a
PC; less than 3% have Internet access.
NEED FOR INFORMATION

 To improve representation of an entity

 To update the level of knowledge
 To reduces uncertainty
 To aid in decision making, planning and
control
ORGANIZATION AND
INFORMATION
The Traditional Organizational
Pyramid
 Characteristics of Information
at Different Managerial Levels

 Data Scope
 Amount of data from which information is extracted
 Time Span
 How long a period the data covers
 Level of Detail
 Degree to which information is specific
Characteristics of Information
at Different Managerial Levels
 Source: Internal vs. External
 Internal data: collected within the organization

 External data: collected from outside sources

 Media, newsletters, government agencies, Internet

Characteristics of Information
at Different Managerial Levels
 Structured and Unstructured Data
 Structured data: numbers and facts easily stored and
retrieved
 Unstructured data: drawn from meetings, conversations,
documents, presentations, etc.
 Valuable in managerial decision making
Characteristics of Information
at Different Managerial Levels
Characteristics of
Effective Information

 Tabular and Graphical Representation

 Certain information better presented graphically
 Trends as lines
 Distributions as pie charts
 Performance comparisons as bar charts
 Many people prefer tabular data for complex problem
solving
Tabular and Graphical
Representation
On-line Analytical Processing
(OLAP)

 Cube of tables showing relationships among

related variables
 Operates on specially organized data or on
relational database data
 Easily answers questions like “What products are
selling well?” or “Where are the weakest-
performing sales offices?”
 Faster than relational applications
OLAP (Cont.)
OLAP (Cont.)
Business Intelligence
 Generate quickly figures and ratios about store
sales, inventory, profitability, category reviews and
more

 Tracking information for operations as well as for

sales and marketing use
Dynamic Representation

 Data presented in real time

 Includes moving images representing speed or

direction

 Changing colors represent rate of change

 Use expected to grow

Managers and Their Information
Systems
Types of organization

 Functional organization
 Project organization
 Matrix organization
INFORMATION SYSTEM

Information system are a set of

people, procedures and resources
that collects, transforms and
disseminates information in an
organization or a system that
accepts data resources as input
and process them into information
products as output.
 Information system is a system that uses the
resources of hardware, software and people
to perform input, processing, output, storage
and control activities that transform data
resources into information products.
Organizational Structure
 IT Flattens the Organization
 Eliminates middle managers
The Matrix Structure

 People report to different supervisors, depending

on project, product, or location of work

 More successful for smaller, entrepreneurial firms

 IT supports matrix structure

 Easier access to cross-functional information
The Matrix Structure
SYSTEMS

 System is defined as a set of elements

arranged in an orderly manner to
accomplish an objective. The term
system is generally used for a group of
actions, personnel and procedures,
used for processing data. In general, it
is a set of related activities which may
or may not involve computers.
COMPONENTS of a system
INPUT PROCESS OUTPUT

ENVIRONMENT

INPUT PROCESS OUTPUT

FILTER

Generalized Model of a System

TYPES OF SYSTEM

 Sub system
 Black box system
 Closed system
 Open system
 Deterministic system
 Probability system
 Attributes of Information
1. Accuracy in representation
2. Complete in content
3. Form of presentation
4. Frequency of reporting
5. Scope of coverage
6. Sources of collection
7. Time dimension: Past, current & future
8. Relevance & utility for DM
9. On time when needed
10. Just in Time
Fundamental Roles of IS in
Business
Business: A system of
systems
Organizational Levels and
Functions
Four Major Types of IS